Satish told the Associated Press that the spacecraft had accomplished the bulk of its objectives, and indeed, NASA's radar had already mapped 90 percent of the moon's poles by June.

Among the many Indian instruments on Chadrayaan 1 was an impactor that the spacecraft dropped to the surface in November. The impactor probe photographed the moon's surface and measured the lunar atmosphere as it descended to a planned high-speed crash-landing.

For nearly two weeks earlier this year, Chandrayaan 1 had the moon to itself—Japan's Kaguya spacecraft met its planned end June 10, and NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter did not reach lunar orbit until June 23.

Photograph of Earth from Chandrayaan 1's lunar orbit during the solar eclipse of July 22: NASA

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